Does it take some time to get over the seemingly gratuitous nudity? Absolutely. (Does the story — which, it perhaps warrants calling out, was written and directed by woem — justify it? Also yes!)

But this short series; a bit of a prequel to the Lupin III franchise, is a masterclass in animation. We've watched a lot of arthouse anime and a lot of high-budget stuff in the past few years; this is, bar none, the most visually engrossing thing we've seen. Every single episode is sumptuously graded and composed, with varying styles and schemes. The plot itself coheres in a way that doesn't quite hit Cowboy Bebop's heights, but does a very good job mixing the flavor-of-the-week with a larger arc.

Watch this! Stick with it! It's worth it!

★★★★★